Fraud, incompetence and lies - the truth about the BNP's finances

Those who read this blog and other anti-fascist sites regularly will know that one of the outstanding traits of the British National Party is its propensity to become embroiled in an almost perpetual series of financial disasters. File on Four last night pointed out some of those that we have already encountered but a couple of things emerged that look likely, if the organisations concerned take action now rather than waiting and allowing the party to cover up its misdeeds, to lead to criminal charges.

One of the problems that the BBC faces when conducting an investigation of this kind is that of evidence, or rather the lack of hard evidence. Where MPs can get away with using Parliamentary privilege to make accusations without the risk of comeback and we, to a certain extent, can get away with a lot (largely due to the fact that any action taken against us would be financially untenable) the BBC has to conform to libel laws in every respect, making sure it has the evidence to back up its claims before it makes them. While this limits the BBC in what it can say, every claim it makes is more valid because it has the solid evidence, or at least clear testimony, to back it up.

Last night's File on Four brought us a whole swathe of information, some of which we already know, but also some new and interesting tidbits...